How I Maintain My Natural Hair on a Lazy Regimen

Short washing and detangling regimen (1.5 hours max)
I skip my usual pre-poo step and go straight into washing with a cleansing conditioner, such as As I Am Cleansing Pudding, or a gentle shampoo, such as Dessert Essence Coconut Shampoo.

My hair is already in jumbo twists from the previous week, so there is no need to section it off for washing. After washing, I slap on some conditioner and let it set under a plastic grocery bag, which is my go-to shower cap, for about 15 minutes. Then I lightly finger detangle each twist, re-twist, and rinse off the conditioner. Afterwards, my hair is plopped, sealed with my homemade shea butter mixture, and then air-dried overnight. I do this once a week, and it does not take much effort or time at all; I’d estimate that I spend about 1-1.5 hours on my hair on wash days.

Pinned up twists during the week
Styling my hair is a quick process – about 20 minutes – the morning after my wash day. I just re-twist my hair into 10-12 fresh jumbo twists, and that’s it! (Once in a blue moon, I will stretch my hair with heat after wash day so that I have more sleek jumbo twists.) The twists are then bunned and/or pinned, like in the following photos, for my “everyday” look. Maintenance of my hair over the course of the week is very minimal; I don’t do anything other than protect my strands with a satin bonnet or scarf while I sleep and re-bun or re-pin in the mornings.
The process literally takes seconds.

Lazy days: jumbo twists in bun or pinned. (The ones with me in the purple are done on straightened hair.)

Fancy styling when the mood strikes
When I am “feeling a bit fancy”, I will remove my twists for a chunky afro to wear for a couple of days or do a fresh twist out if I want big, curly hair. If I’m feeling extra fancy, the moment may call for a braidout on straightened, freshly washed hair.  The “extra fancy” process is much longer and intensive, hence why it is a rare style for me.

(LEFT) Shrunken chunky afro. (RIGHT) Feeling EXTRA fancy: braid out on straightened hair.

Longer hair requires a simpler regimen
This “lazy” regimen is something I started last year after annoyance with my long twist takedown process and detangling sessions. (Granted, it was only several hours once a month but it was still too long for my liking.) I also desired the freedom of being able to wash my hair more frequently given my new routine of exercising three times a week; the thought of going two or more weeks between washes just didn’t sit well with me anymore. Since my hair is long enough to put into 10 twists, I figured why not do that weekly! I was initially nervous about the styling, but it has actually worked out really well.